Neighborhood dispute in Arleta leaves one neighbor dead, another arrested

A dispute between neighbors in Arleta ended with the death of one man and the arrest of another, authorities said.

The incident began about 4 a.m. Sunday near the corner of Beachy Avenue and Tonopah Street when witnesses reported a disturbance, said Lt. Paul Vernon of the Los Angeles Police Department.

“One description was that someone was doing doughnuts in the street, screeching tires,” Vernon said. “But no one called police right away.”

Two residents went out to investigate and discovered another neighbor riding in the car with two other men, police said.

When the residents confronted the car's occupants, the driver started stabbing one of the residents with a knife while the other two occupants assisted in the attack, police said.

One of the unidentified residents, described only as a 36-year-old man, was killed. The other resident retreated to his home and survived the attack, police said.

The neighbor who had been riding in the car was later arrested in his home. Police did not release his name. The two other occupants of the car remain at large, police said.

“We have yet to identify the two outstanding suspects, apparently friends of the man we detained,” Vernon said. “We’ll get to the bottom of it soon, but in the meantime, if anyone has information about this incident we’d like them to call.”

Both suspects appeared to be in their 20s, one tall with a beard, wearing a hat, and armed with a gun. The other was shorter and armed with a knife.